“Why is it that they say you have to approach a living guru in the sense that you just cannot read the words or hear the lectures?” Bhakta Mike asked. “Because it is not just the words or the text or the sound. We want the living experience of what we read or hear and conceive in our own subjectivity. If we can do everything on our own then why are there so many educational institutions? We accept learning from a teacher about so many practical matters, yet when it comes to religion and philosophy everyone thinks the only qualification necessary to be an expert is a birth certificate. But just because everyone has a foot does not make them automatically expert shoemakers. Of course, guru is not an ordinary teacher. Krishna says,’ know that I am the guru.’ If we are actually seeking Krishna and realize that Krishna is coming to us in the form of guru then there should be no difficulty accepting guru.”

“Why can’t that transmission go through the recordings of their voices, through their words in the books? Bhakta Mike followed-up with. “Yes, their teachings do come to us through books and recordings, but they are passive teachers. We can examine them, but they can’t examine us. Do we think ourselves so perfect that we are not capable of misconception? We may need someone more expert than ourselves or with a different viewpoint than our own to confirm, improve or correct our personal understanding. Most importantly of all, guru is there to chastise us and break the false egoism of independence that is the fundamental root that binds us to the material conception of life. This may not happen with book learning. Rather it may even help foster our false sense of independence and lead us to think we know everything simply by our own prowess without surrender that stands at the threshold of the spiritual world,” Sripad Puri Maharaja responded.

“Srila Siddantha Saraswati Thakur said that Mayavadis can’t chant the Holy Name just like you can’t taste the honey in a bottle by simply licking the bottle. They think they are tasting the Holy Name but you have to receive that connection from to be able to taste the honey in the bottle. It is a heart transaction, from the heart of the guru to the heart of the sincere seekers – the disciples,” Rasaraja das Prabhu interjected.